Stardew Valley devs’ Haunted Chocolatier is held back by one promise

It won’t be long before Stardew Valley‘s ten-year anniversary rolls around, as we’re eight years on from the launch of the beloved farming sim. Developer Eric Barone, known professionally as ConcernedApe, is still refining the game across all platforms, but he’s also got his eyes set on delivering a brand-new experience in the future: Haunted Chocolatier. However, getting the game out the door is going to require a bit more patience.

As the next Stardew Valley update draws closer to PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch players, Barone expresses on social media that “console and mobile ports [of version 1.6] are still in progress. I acknowledge that they are taking a long time. There are reasons for this, but the bottom line is that they are not out yet, we are still working on them, and they have been our primary focus since 1.6 came out for PC.”

With work still underway to roll out the life sim update to other platforms, it has naturally put work on Barone’s potential new Switch game on hold.

Barone adds that he hasn’t “touched Haunted Chocolatier in a long time because I am committed to finalizing Stardew [Valley] 1.6 first. To those who are frustrated or even angry about the timeline, I understand and accept full responsibility.” Haunted Chocolatier has been in-development since 2020, with an official announcement trailer and website roll out commencing in October 2021. But exactly can you expect from Hotel Chocolatier?

You can expect the same cute pixel art that populates Stardew Valley to be part of the game’s aesthetic, although Haunted Chocolatier will be incorporating action game and RPG game elements into its gameplay. Similarly to Stardew Valley, you’ll need to acquire resources and valuable items to thrive, but this time you’ll be running a chocolate shop inside a haunted castle – rather than operating a cozy farm.

When it comes to the Haunted Chocolatier release date, Barone says in a blog post that “it’s still relatively early in development and I want to be able to work in peace without the pressure of a release date, or even an estimated release date.” The title of the game might suggest it could be quite a creepy experience, Barone is eager to let players know that this isn’t the case.

Describing Stardew Valley as the “sun” in an explanation of the game’s thematic content, he clarifies that “I intend for this game to be positive, uplifting and life-affirming […] Haunted Chocolatier channels the energy of the moon. Both are vital.”

Although Stardew Valley is available on Switch and other platforms, Haunted Chocolatier is still bound to PC for the moment. That could change in the future, though. “The only platform I am 100% certain about is PC. However, I have every intention of bringing it to the other major platforms as well,” Barone says in the blog post.

In the meantime, you can put our best Stardew Valley farm layouts to good use, or check out our list of the best cozy games you can play right now.